Tweet

XVIII Airborne Corps

8 Oct, 8 tweets, 5 min read

1 of 12:

Since tomorrow is our final day of Tragic Ambition, our commemoration of Operation #MarketGarden, we figured we'd give a bibliography of sorts. Let's go through some of the books we used throughout the series in the hopes that you'll let us know what you think of them.

2 of 12: Let's start here. This one was published 2 years ago to great reviews in the US. It's thorough (perhaps too detailed in its account of tactics) & makes a layered case of blame against Monty. The book has many critics & we'll let them voice their concerns in the replies.

@82ndABNDiv

3 of 12: This focuses on the US airborne units, giving life to the men of the @82ndABNDiv and the @101stAASLTDIV. In the US, A Bridge Too Far ( book & the movie) dominates the OMG landscape, but McManus offers new voices [& extends the story out through November].

4 of 12: This fast-paced book offers another fresh perspective [& new insights] by focusing on the German perspective. ATJ describes how the German forces facing the were able to reconstitute a viable fighting force to defeat the lightly armed Allied airborne forces. Good read.

5 of 12: Deeply researched, much detail, but sometimes a bit overwhelming in data & tactics. This is a Soldier's view of the operation; keen insight into the airborne forces waiting impatiently in England prior to Sep 17th, but nothing particularly new if you've read the first 3.

@rgpoulussen

6 of 12: Here's another perspective: @rgpoulussen's "Lost at Nijmegen," just about the best of the batch [we have it on Kindle]. Poulussen provides new insight based on recently discovered documents. His conclusions faults Gavin for the delay in the capture of the Waal Bridge.

7 of 12: Though neither is well-written, it's interesting to contrast the accounts by Gavin & Urquhart. While Urquhart accepts blame for the 1st Airborne Division's failings in Arnhem, Gavin blames his subordinate 508 PIR commander for the delay in taking the bridge at Njimegen.

@Strike_Hold

8 of 12: These two tell the accounts of the @Strike_Hold and @101stAASLTDIV. Both are really good, gritty, Paratrooper accounts of the insertion and the fighting at the bridge. Both have some really good maps as well.

• • •

Missing some Tweet in this thread? You can try to force a refresh

This Thread may be Removed Anytime!

Twitter may remove this content at anytime! Save it as PDF for later use!

More from @18airbornecorps

XVIII Airborne Corps

@18airbornecorps

9 Oct

1 of 11: Operation Market Garden lesson 20 of 20: Character matters, particularly at the senior level. Let’s take a look the two main actors in Market Garden -- Eisenhower and Montgomery – and how their individual characters manifest in this tragedy

2 of 11: Ike missed WWI. After the Great War, he spent operational time in the Philippines as MacArthur's chief of staff & assistant adviser to the Philippine govt on military matters. This was an unstable period wherein the dangers of guerilla warfare loomed large in his memory.

3 of 11: Partly as a result of this experience, Ike favored a coordinated offensive along a broad front, where Allied mass, logistical expertise, & unrelenting pressure would not only push back the Germans but leave few pockets of resistance to disrupt the Allied comms zone.

Read 11 tweets

XVIII Airborne Corps

@18airbornecorps

9 Oct

@USArmy

1 of 5: We're on the final day of our Tragic Ambition series. Before we close out, we'll unveil the final 5 lessons for @USArmy leaders from Operation Market Garden.

2 of 5: Lesson 1⃣6⃣ [this one is not going to be popular with everyone] Don't be afraid to fire subordinates who either can't meet your intent or willfully refuse to.

3 of 5: Montgomery [who always thought he was the smartest guy in the room] openly disregarded and disrespected his senior British and American commander's since North Africa.

Read 5 tweets

XVIII Airborne Corps

@18airbornecorps

8 Oct

@usairforce

Lesson 9

1 of 5:

Op Market Garden Lesson 9⃣of 20: Airborne & @usairforce must be SINGULARLY controlled by a joint commander and staff.

2 of 5:

By way of example, one of the best Airborne operations ever conducted in history was Operation Just Cause in 1989. XVIII Corps and supporting Air Force units under Lieutenant General Carl Stiner, corps commander, as the Joint Task Force Headquarters Commander.

3 of 5:

Stiner understood the limitations of the airborne forces was inserted. He also thought through the impact of resupply from the air on the operation.

Read 5 tweets

XVIII Airborne Corps

@18airbornecorps

4 Oct

@USArmy

1 of 7

As part of our Tragic Ambition series, b/w now & end of Friday we're giving you 2⃣0⃣ lessons for @USArmy leaders from Op Market Garden.

Here's Lesson 2⃣: An understanding of the op environment must drive any plan. The plan must NOT come first.

2 of 7

Montgomery believed that his dramatic maneuver, a swift penetration deep into the heart of Germany, would win despite all the risks associated. Thus, he developed his plan without an understanding of environment [the environment serving as the context for that approach.]

3 of 7

Here are 5 elements a clear-eyed study of the operational environment would have revealed:

Read 7 tweets

XVIII Airborne Corps

@18airbornecorps

4 Oct

@USArmy

1 of 4: OMG Lesson 1⃣: No plan should be so inflexible that it cannot be adjusted at the last minute.
[As we close out our commemoration of Operation Market Garden, we'll offer 20 lessons from that operation for today's @USArmy leaders. These lessons will run until Oct. 9.]

👇

2 of 4:

The Market Garden plan was hastily developed in less than a week, one of 18 separate plans developed in a span of 40 days that swamped headquarters staffs. Prior to D Day, intel began to appear about the possible presence of Panzer units around Arnhem.

3 of 4: The Allied staffs were swamped with all the hasty planning, cancelled ops, planning, cancelled ops and were unable to respond to this new info. Furthermore, the Market portion was sufficiently rigid that there was really no way to alter the insertion based on this intel.

Read 4 tweets

XVIII Airborne Corps

@18airbornecorps

4 Oct

@75thRangerOMST

1 of 9: Today, on the 27th anniversary of the Battle of Mogadishu, we caught up with Matt Eversmann, the @75thRangerOMST Staff Sergeant who lead the daytime raid. Eversmann, of course, is immortalized in "Black Hawk Down" (he's played by Josh Hartnett).

Here's what he told us:

@USArmy

2 of 9: "Back then, in 1993, the @USArmy hadn't seen that kind of combat since Vietnam. It was so unique, dramatic, & brutal for that age. It's an odd contrast with today. I was just on @FtBraggNC & now we have these young soldiers have led troops in battle 3, 4, 5, or 6 times."

3 of 9: "We have kids today who are what we were. The faces change. The names change. But that grit is the same. That valor is the same. That love for one another is the same."

Read 9 tweets

Support us! We are indie developers!

This site is made by just two indie developers on a laptop doing marketing, support and development! Read more about the story.

Become a Premium Member ($3/month or $30/year) and get exclusive features!

Become Premium

Too expensive? Make a small donation by buying us coffee ($5) or help with server cost ($10)

Donate via Paypal Become our Patreon

Thank you for your support!